Messages
by SkySurf
Summary: Warning: Shounen-ai Pairing: TezuFuji It all started with Fuji's way of expressing his feelings to Tezuka-through text messages...But will Tezuka realise Fuji's feelings in time?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis**

**A/N: With loads of hugs to my beta-reader, Vierblith. :D**

**Chapter 1- Text Messages**

_Tezuka Kunimitsu linked his hands around the small neck of the honey-haired boy and pulled the latter closer to him. He began to lead, moving them in time to a melodious yet calming music under the moonlight._

_"Fuji Syusuke," he breathed huskily as he stared down, deep into the immense blue eyes of the tensai. "Do you know how much I love you?"_

_The shorter boy in his arms grinned knowingly and replied with a tease in his voice, "I don't know. Show me."_

_Without a word, Tezuka angled his head and was about to seal their lips together…_

Tezuka jerked awake, his hands fisted tightly onto the blankets. He slowly sat up in bed, taking in his environment before realizing that he had been dreaming.

"…and that dream involved Fuji," Tezuka muttered as he ran a hand through his tousled brown hair. He glanced at his clock on his bedside. It indicated 2 o'clock in the morning.

Tezuka sighed. He had lost count of the number of times he had dreamt about his friend. Even now, he was still confused why he would have such provocative dreams about Fuji. Could it be that he wanted Fuji Syusuke? Not as a friend, "…but as my boyfriend?" Tezuka whispered before trying to fight against the blush that was slowly creeping up his face.

Tezuka reached past the clock to grab his handphone on the study table. He raised an eyebrow when he saw that there was a text message sent to him at about half an hour ago. Wondering who could the sender be, he read the message.

_Good night. Sleep tight. Take Care._

It was from Fuji. Although the message was simple and short, Tezuka could still feel warmth spreading through his heart.

After contemplating for a moment, Tezuka's fingers flew fast over the keypad as he replied to Fuji's text message.

_Good night. You should sleep early._

Upon sending his reply, Tezuka held his handphone as he lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, waiting for the tensai's reply.

'But Fuji could already be asleep at this time,' he thought.

Just then, the familiar message text tone broke the silence of the night. Snapping out of his thoughts, Tezuka unconsciously let out a soft smile when he saw Fuji's reply.

Shouldn't you be asleep at this time? Well, of course I will sleep early. It is 2:15 in the morning now, you know.

Tezuka felt his cheeks redden once more upon recalling the dream that had woken him up. He shook his head to clear the thoughts away before sending a reply back to Fuji.

I will be sleeping soon. See you later.

With that, he placed his handphone next to his pillow and he stared out of his window right into the starless night.

Tezuka could not remember when was the first time that he had received a good night message from Fuji. However, he knew that since then Fuji had always been the first to wish Tezuka good night. Before the Seigaku tennis captain knew it, he found himself looking forward to receiving Fuji's messages every night.

"Oyasumi, Syusuke." Tezuka unconsciously breathed out the words as his eyelids began to droop heavily, letting him drift off into a deep sleep.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Fuji Syusuke smiled lazily as he read the crisp reply from the boy, who held his affection – Tezuka Kunimitsu. Tugging an arm beneath his pillow, Fuji stared off into space, wondering if Tezuka would ever reciprocate his feelings.

It was some time ago when Fuji decided to try 'courting' Tezuka or, at the very least, become closer to the Seigaku tennis captain. Uncertain of how he should go about letting his feelings known to Tezuka, Fuji had started out by wishing the brown-haired boy 'good night' every night. Initially, the stony-looking boy did not reply. But since about three weeks ago, Tezuka occasionally responded to Fuji's messages.

Fuji held those rare text messages from Tezuka dear to his heart. Each message meant to the tensai that Tezuka acknowledged his presence despite knowing that the messages were mere polite good night wishes.

Fuji sighed heavily. "Maybe I should just give up the thought of even trying to court Tezuka," he muttered. "Realizing that I love him has already changed me. Now I wonder where the sadistic tensai is?" He mused out loud.

He turned to his side, yawning as he slowly fell into a dreamless sleep. "One more week," Fuji mumbled, "If he doesn't really like me by then, I will learn to give up on him."

**A/N**: **So sorry for the long wait in coming up with the story. Had writer's block! But the block is now gone! :D**

**That is the first chapter! Thanks for reading and hopefully everyone likes it so far! :D**

**Of course, reviews will be appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis

**A/N: With many great hugs to my beta-reader, Vierblith**

Chapter 2 – Love Fuji?

The early morning sun streamed through the gauzy curtains and flooded the bedroom with warm light. Tezuka stirred in bed, eyebrows drawing together into a frown as he slowly forced himself to open his sleepy eyes.

Despite his slight exhaustion, Tezuka looked forward to going to school. He stretched lazily in bed and put on his spectacles before making his way to the bathroom.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"Ohayou, Fuji," Tezuka greeted, his heart skipping a beat when he saw the tensai leaning against the wall just a few feet away from his house.

That started around the same time Fuji began sending good night messages, Tezuka recalled, unconsciously letting out a soft smile. He felt nostalgic. Tezuka could clearly remember the Cheshire grin on the tensai's face when he first saw Fuji waiting outside his house to go to school together. At that time, Fuji only commented that he wanted to walk to school together with Tezuka since Tezuka's house was along the way.

'Ah,' Tezuka thought, 'since when have I been accustomed to walking to school with Fuji?'

"I wonder what you are thinking, Tezuka," Fuji's voice broke in, effectively bringing Tezuka back to reality. "Care to share?" Fuji asked, giving Tezuka a lopsided grin.

"Not a chance," Tezuka shot back. The corners of his lips curled a little when he saw the pout on Fuji's lips.

The journey to school was quiet, but comfortably so. The occasional brushes of his knuckle's against Fuji's seemed to send electric sparks to Tezuka's heart. Tezuka tried to conceal his reactions, while, at the same time, stole glances at the seemingly ever cheerful Fuji.

Several meters away from the entrance of Seigaku High, they noticed Inui, the data tennis player.

"Inui," Fuji remarked. "I wonder whom he might be waiting for."

"Ohayou, Inui," Fuji greeted, his blue eyes now scrutinizing the dark-haired player. "Who are you waiting for?"

"Tezuka."

Upon hearing the reply, two pairs of eyes stared at Inui in surprise.

"What would you wish to say?" Tezuka inquired, his curiosity now piqued.

Inui steadied his glasses, and flipped open his notebook. He opened his mouth and was about to reply when he paused to look at Fuji.

Raising an eyebrow, Fuji asked with an evident note of stubbornness in his voice, "I have to go?"

"Yes, please." Inui gave an affirmative nod. "I need to speak to Tezuka alone. You can find out from Tezuka later since there is a hundred percent chance that you would ask anyway."

"But-" Fuji began to protest, when Tezuka placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke in a warning tone, "Fuji…"

Fuji sighed. Giving a submissive shrug, he flashed a fleeting, dazzling smile, as he teased, "Aye aye, Tezuka Buchou."

Once Fuji was out of earshot, Inui cleared his throat and began as he started to flip through his notebook, "According to my data, it was one month and five days ago when you and Fuji started to appear at school together. Since then, there has been a fifty percent increase in your happiness indicator, and a ninety-eight percent increase in your conversations that mention Fuji. In addition," Inui emphasized, not wanting Tezuka to interrupt yet, "there is a ninety-five percent increase that you show extreme concern about Fuji. So," he paused to catch a breath, having said so many things at one go. He asked, "Are you in love with Fuji?"

Tezuka would have stared back at Inui. But he cleared his head. Instead, he cleared his throat, pushing his glasses against the bridge of his nose – an action that he always did whenever he felt uncomfortable.

"What is your calculated probability that I would confirm your data, Inui?" Tezuka asked, feeling slightly inquisitive.

Without hesitation, Inui squared his shoulders as he snapped his notebook close. With an air of confidence, he replied, "Ninety-seven percent."

Tezuka's eyelids flickered in surprise. Apparently Inui had been observing him, and even seemed to know his feelings much more than he himself did. 'But is that really love? What is love?' Tezuka thought.

Recovering from his surprise, Tezuka folded his arms across his chest and he replied defensively, "Gomen nasai, Inui. But," he paused, contemplating for a moment whether he should say the following words before coming to a conclusion, "I don't love Fuji."

Tezuka felt an immediate twinge of regret once those words tumbled out of his mouth. He began to doubt himself.

'If I don't love Fuji, what's up with those dreams about him?' He questioned silently. Giving a mental shrug, he faced Inui once more. "See you during tennis practice then."

With that, he strode off towards the direction of his classroom, unaware of a pair of blue eyes that were following him.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Inui was not surprised at all to hear Tezuka refute his data. "Out of the three percent, there is a two percent chance that Tezuka would deny because he feels uncomfortable answering my question, and there is the remaining one percent chance that he truly does not like Fuji at all. A pity that I don't have Fuji's full data yet," Inui mumbled, scribbling furiously into his notebook as he slowly walked away.

But unknown to Tezuka and Inui, Fuji had not headed straight to his classroom as promised. The curious tensai had made a roundabout to walk back to the entrance of Seigaku High and was surprised to hear Inui asking about Tezuka's feelings towards Fuji himself.

Fuji's heart began to race. What was Tezuka going to reply? Yes? Fuji thought. Or…

"…don't love Fuji." Tezuka replied.

At once, Fuji's heart seemed to sink right into a bottomless pit of sadness. His mind seemed to stop working save for those hurtful words that kept playing in his head. '…don't love Fuji.'

Spinning around, Fuji turned towards the direction of his classroom and slowly made his way there, oblivious of the noises that other students were making. It was rare to see the tensai walking with a serious expression on his face.

'Maybe Tezuka never thinks of me as a lover…He only sees me as a friend.' Fuji thought, 'But then again, maybe my method of 'courting' is wrong. As a result, Tezuka does not realize my feelings for him. But,' Fuji sighed, "Expressing my feelings to Tezuka does not mean that he will reciprocate," he mumbled, his shoulders slumping in defeat.

Straightening his shoulders, Fuji took in a deep breath before letting it out slowly. That action seemed to calm down both his mind and heart.

'Well,' Fuji thought, 'I am Fuji Syusuke. I can't give up without properly trying, can I?'

**A/N: I hope everyone enjoy this chapter. :) **

**To those who reviewed previously, thanks again! :D**

**Please feel free to give me your opinions.**

**Of course, reviews are greatly appreciated for this chapter too!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis **

**A/N: With loads of hugs to my beta-reader, vierblith! **

**Chapter 3 – Here comes Tia**

Tezuka found himself relaxing the tensed muscles at the back of his neck only after he had reached his classroom. Sitting on his chair, he took out his books and waited for lessons to start while his mind was preoccupied with the question that Inui had posed earlier.

'Love Fuji?' he questioned himself repeatedly. His eyebrows drew together into a frown. His thoughts were broken off when his hand-phone vibrated, signaling that he had received a text message.

"_Days are too busy. Hours are too long. Few seconds are too fast. But there's always a time for me to say 'Have a Great Day ahead!"_

Tezuka could feel the corner of his lips curl into a smile as he read the text message from Fuji. His heart was filled with warmth.

"Ohayou, minna-san," the teacher, who was dressed in a one-piece black dress with hair tied up in a bun, spoke as she walked into the classroom. "We have a new transfer student joining our class. Her name is Tia." With that, she gestured to a petite-looking girl with long, brown hair resting on her slim shoulders. Everyone clapped to welcome the new student, who did not seem to be shy at all.

"So," the teacher cleared her throat to catch the students' attention again. Her eyes scanned around and stopped with delight at the sight of a certain individual. "Tezuka-kun, I believe you would greatly assist Tia in getting familiar with the school."

Tezuka blinked. 'Me?' He asked silently before the teacher began again, "Now Tia, you can sit beside Tezuka-kun. Now," she paused, clasping her hands together, "Let's begin our lesson."

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

While most female students were shy when interacting with Tezuka, Tia seemed to be the opposite.

"Hello, Tezuka," Tia immediately greeted the stony-looking boy once the school bell had signaled lunch break. "Could you bring me to the canteen? I have no idea where it is, and I am hungry!" She pouted.

Surprised at the outgoing behavior of the transfer student, who was now looking at him with innocent, wide eyes, Tezuka sighed.

"Okay, let's go." With that, Tezuka took his packed lunch and walked out of the classroom, expecting Tia to follow behind him. He stopped when he felt an arm linking through his.

Frowning, he looked down to find Tia's arm looped through his.

Sending Tezuka a wide, yet seemingly innocent grin, Tia said, "Let's go. I am starving!"

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

The canteen was packed with students as usual. Chatters of hungry students and voices of stallholders repeating food orders filled the noisy atmosphere.

Despite the crowd, there were still seats available. Sitting comfortably on one of the seats, Tezuka turned to Tia, and said in monotone, "You can go and buy lunch for yourself. I will wait here for you."

"How about your lunch? Aren't you eating?"

Fighting the urge to roll his eyes in annoyance, Tezuka replied immediately while holding up his packed lunch to emphasize his point, "I brought my lunch."

Giving a nonchalant shrug, Tia turned to buy her food, leaving Tezuka to eat along for the time being.

Not long after, a familiar voice shouted out. "Buchou!" Eiji greeted with a bright grin as he plopped himself to the seat opposite Tezuka.

"Tezuka," Oishi said, acknowledging the presence of the Seigaku tennis captain as he sat beside Eiji, "Alone?" He asked.

Before Tezuka could reply, a sweet voice broke in, "Hi! I suppose you are friends of Tezuka? My name is Tia, a new student here. Nice to meet you." Tia introduced herself as she made herself comfortable by sitting beside Tezuka. Without waiting for the Golden Pair to introduce themselves, Tia turned to Tezuka with a smile on her face, "Here, let me treat you to sushi," she said, as she placed a piece of sushi that she had purchased earlier into Tezuka's lunch.

Eiji whispered into the ear of his boyfriend, "Ne, Oishi," he said as he frowned a little, "Is that Tia girl very close to Buchou?"

Oishi was also surprised by how close Tezuka and Tia were sitting together, not to mention that Tezuka did not reject Tia's sushi treat.

"I don't know," Oishi whispered back.

With a pout on his lips that made Oishi wanted to kiss Eiji on the spot, Eiji replied, "Well, I don't like that girl."

Sensing a pair of eyes now glaring at them, Oishi cleared his throat and straightened his back. Trying not to feel awkward for being caught gossiping, Oishi asked casually, "So, where is Fuji? Is he coming to eat at the canteen too?"

Immediately, Tezuka's eyes widened. 'Fuji!' he thought as his heart began to race, 'I have forgotten to inform Fuji to meet at the canteen!'

Upon that realization, Tezuka's mind began to panic. It was some time ago, around the same time when Fuji started to send good night messages to Tezuka, that the two of them had made a silent agreement to eat their packed lunch together at the rooftop where it was quiet, away from the noisy canteen. He could still remember that clear day when Fuji suddenly popped into his class during lunch break and dragged the surprised captain to the rooftop.

"This is a nice place to have lunch. With no distractions, no noisy people around…" Fuji chuckled as he held out his packed lunch in front of Tezuka, "Let's eat together. I brought your share today."

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"Fuji!" Eiji called out cheerfully as he waved, breaking Tezuka's thoughts, "There you are! We were wondering where you were!"

Tezuka turned to find himself looking into the immense blue eyes of Fuji Syusuke. He noticed that Fuji was holding a packed lunch in his right hand.

"Ar," Tia greeted, "You must be a friend of Tezuka too! I'm Tia, nice to meet you!" she paused, before continuing, "Well, Tezuka is very nice to accompany me to have lunch here. Would you like to join us?" she beamed.

There was the unmistakable note of iciness in Fuji's voice as he rejected with his usual smile, "Oh, it is okay." He continued without giving Tezuka a chance to interrupt, "I have finished my lunch. See you."

As Fuji spun around to make his way out of the canteen, he felt a tug on his arm, "Fuji."

Forcing himself to put on his usual smile again, Fuji looked at Tezuka as he asked sweetly, "Is anything the matter, _Buchou_?"

Tezuka's gaze shifted away. He felt extremely apologetic and guilty for neglecting Fuji. The question that Inui had posed that morning combined with Tia's chatter had made Tezuka…disorganized.

"If there is nothing, see you during tennis practice then," Fuji replied icily as he shrugged his arm out of Tezuka's hold, hurrying out of the canteen without looking back.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

**'**Who am I kidding with?' Fuji thought. He gave a bitter laugh as he clenched his fists unconsciously. 'Well, I guess I don't need to try anymore.' His eyes darkened with disappointment and sadness as he hurried down the corridor. His packed lunch was still unopened in his right hand.

**A/N: Once again, sorry for the slow update. But I do hope that everyone enjoys reading this chapter, though you might think that it is a little short. :X**

**For those who reviewed previously, thanks!!**

**Once again, reviews for this chapter will be greatly loved! :D**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis**

**A/N: With loads of hugs to my beta-reader, Vierblith!!**

**Chapter 4 – Fuji's Little Tantrum**

For the first time, Tezuka felt very terrible.

'Today's lunch was the noisiest and lousiest one that I ever had,' Tezuka thought gloomily, packing his school bag since the school bell had just signaled the end of classes. 'And I've got to apologize to Fuji.'

"Tezuka-kun," Tia exclaimed happily, as she suddenly clung onto the moody captain's arm. "Would you like to introduce Tokyo to me? I am new here, and so I am not sure about this city!"

Any onlooker would have noticed Tezuka's dark mood instantly, but Tia seemed to be oblivious to Tezuka's narrowed eyes and stiffened shoulders as she continued to chatter away.

"Tezuka."

The pair turned to find Oishi standing at the entrance of the classroom, waving to them. Behind the vice-captain was the unmistakable red-hair of the acrobatic player, Eiji Kikumaru.

"Buchou," Eiji called out, "It's time for tennis practice! Hurry up, or you might end up running laps instead!" He teased.

Despite the playful remark made by Eiji, Tezuka could not help but feel extremely grateful for the presence of the Golden Pair. He immediately removed himself from Tia's hold, muttering, "Sorry, but I have tennis practice. You can ask other classmates to accompany you."

"Well, okay then!" Tia replied cheerfully, immediately letting go of Tezuka's arm. That action totally took Tezuka by surprise. He was expecting Tia to sulk or protest, yet this girl did not do anything that was within Tezuka's expectation.

Muttering a word of "thanks," Tezuka almost dashed out of the classroom, a little worried that Tia might suddenly change her mind.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"Thanks."

Oishi smiled. "Well, I suppose Tezuka has a hard time rejecting a girl," he commented wistfully.

"It is more like the girl does not give me a chance to reject her at times," Tezuka replied dryly.

Despite knowing that they would meet during tennis practice, Tezuka sent a text message to Fuji as the trio walked towards the tennis club.

_'I'm sorry. I should have informed you that I was going to have lunch at the canteen instead.'_

After a few moments, Tezuka was delighted to see that he had received a reply from Fuji. But his light mood was immediately replaced with a grim face and furrowed eyebrows when he saw the reply from the tensai.

_'You don't have to apologize since we didn't agree to have lunch together in the first place.'_

'That's it? Only one sentence? No teasing? No playful remark?' Tezuka thought.

Tezuka creased his eyebrows together as he read the text message again. It was obvious that Fuji was upset with Tezuka.

'It seemed like we are having a lovers' quarrel,' Tezuka mused, suddenly stopping in his tracks upon realizing what he had just thought.

"Is there something wrong?" Oishi asked, feeling very concerned at the rare expression of surprise on the captain's face.

Tezuka blinked. Feeling awkward for being caught off guard, he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose as he cleared his throat. He replied in his usual emotionless voice, "There is nothing wrong. Let's go."

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Everyone felt that there was some kind of tension between the tensai and the captain. It was clear that whenever Tezuka tried to approach Fuji, the latter would just grab the nearest person and lead the way, far from Tezuka. No one now dared to approach the pair.

"Fuji," Tezuka began upon seeing that the tensai was alone, "I—"

"Ar! Echizen!" Fuji greeted in delight as he turned away, ignoring the helpless-looking captain. "Let's have a match, shall we?"

The short green-haired player smirked as he replied, "Mada mada dane, Fuji-senpai."

With that, the pair walked off to an unoccupied court to start the match, leaving Tezuka behind.

"A ninety-eight percent chance that Fuji is throwing a tantrum," Inui commented as he quickly scribbled into his black notebook.

"And a hundred percent chance that Ryo doesn't realize it," Momoshiro added in, as he moved to stand beside the data tennis player. "Still as dense as ever." He sighed.

"But at least Ochibi realizes your love for him," Eiji chirped in, delighted to see Momoshiro blush with embarrassment. The rest of the regulars became silent as they watched the start of the match between Echizen and Fuji.

The match was intense, and it ended with the tensai winning a set at 6 — 4.

"Ryo, let's have dinner together," Momoshiro suggested, draping a protective and proprietary arm around Echizen's tired shoulders. Tezuka saw the instinctive gesture and felt a twinge of jealousy towards the pair.

Tennis practice had officially ended after Fuji's match against Echizen. Frankly, everyone heaved a sigh of relief since they no longer had to find themselves getting caught in the tension between Tezuka and Fuji.

Fuji packed his belongings quickly after changing into a fresh set of clothes. Despite the façade that the tensai had put up, showing everyone that he was fine, and was able to put up a good fight against Echizen, he was in pain. After Fuji saw Tezuka and Tia having lunch together at the canteen, he had, out of anger, offered his packed lunch to Momoshiro who accepted it delightedly. Since then, his stomach was acting up from the lack of food.

Once he finished packing, Fuji immediately hurried out of the changing room without bidding goodbye to anyone.

"Tezuka," Oishi said, placing a hand onto the stony-looking boy's shoulder, "Go and talk to Fuji. Leave the rest to me. I will lock up the room."

Shooting the vice-captain a grateful look, Tezuka took his bag and went after the tensai. But he stopped himself from calling Fuji when he saw the tensai leaving the school with a familiar silver-haired teenager.

"Saeki," Tezuka growled out in a low whisper, as he unconsciously tightened his grip on his bag.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"You got me worried there, buddy," Saeki commented as he helped Fuji carry his bag, "Let's have dinner together. Of course, remember to eat your meals regularly!" He chided his long-time friend gently.

Fuji chuckled. "Well, thanks for coming to fetch me. My gastric is acting up," he paused as he gave Saeki a thoughtful look. "Let's meet tomorrow after school, okay? We could shop together."

Saeki grinned. "Great! No problem!" he replied.

Fuji gave a wave of dismissal. "It is okay. You were nice enough when you agreed to accompany me home, even though I only asked you out at the last minute."

**A/N: So sorry for the wait. But I hope this chapter is worth waiting for. :D**

**Thanks for all who reviewed previously! ******

**Once again, reviews for this chapter will be greatly loved!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis.**

**A/N: With loads of thanks and hugs to my beta-reader, Vierblith!**

**Chapter 5 –Yes, Fuji is jealous**

Tezuka tossed and turned on his bed, unable to sleep. He stared at his handphone, wishing that the screen of the device would light up and indicate, 'You have a message.' Yet it didn't.

Tezuka sighed in great disappointment as he sat up in bed, his hair now tousled from all the restless tossing and turning. The night sky was starless, and filled with thick, dark clouds. It was almost the exact reflection of the captain's current mood. He looked at his handphone again as thoughts began to fill his mind.

'Okay,' Tezuka breathed in deeply as he calmed his racing heart. 'There is no doubt that Fuji is mad at me for forgetting to inform him to meet at the canteen for lunch. But surely Fuji isn't that petty, right?' He frowned as he ran a hand through his brown hair, making it now more tousled than ever.

"But maybe not," Tezuka said dryly as he looked at his handphone once more. "Or maybe Fuji is jealous because of Tia?"

One of his eyebrows rose at that thought. 'Well, that _is _a possibility. If that is the case, I could explain to Fuji and the misunderstanding would be cleared up easily!' Tezuka smirked to himself before another thought pushed itself into the forefront of his brain. 'So, does Fuji's jealousy mean that he actually likes me?'

Immediately, that thought sent his heart fluttering. But being someone who was used to not letting his guard down, Tezuka shook his head. "No way," he said out loud, "Until confirmed, it is all speculation."

Staring at the handphone again that was lying on his lap, Tezuka picked it up. His fingers hovered above the keypad for a while, before they flew fast over it, typing out the message, initiating a text conversation with Fuji for the very first time.

"_Good night, Fuji. Sleep well."_

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Chirps of blissful birds and the warm rays of the rising sun shining through the window signaled the beginning of another day. Tezuka slowly stirred awake as he gradually opened his eyes. Stretching while yawning, he grabbed his handphone to check if there was any reply from the tensai.

Sadly, there was none.

Heaving a sigh of defeat, Tezuka silently promised himself as he dragged his tired body out of bed to get ready for school. 'Today,' he thought grimly, 'I will speak to Fuji and clear up the misunderstanding.'

TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji

The sun had risen by now and was carelessly tossing droplets of light onto the land from the clear blue sky. Clouds scudded across with patches of blue here and there. It was a bright morning, yet Tezuka's mood was the total opposite.

When the captain had left his house, he was once again disappointed with the lack of the presence of Fuji. "I guess I have gotten used to going to school together with Fuji," he muttered as he dragged his heavy feet to school. Right now, Tezuka felt conflicted. He certainly wanted to talk to Fuji, but the tensai seemed to be avoiding him like a plague. 'Or rather,' Tezuka thought, 'he is pissed off with me.' On the other hand, he dreaded at the thought of seeing Tia, the girl who caused all the trouble.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"Ohayo, Tezuka-kun!" Tia greeted loudly at the school gate, her eyes lighting up in delight upon seeing the Seigaku captain as she automatically moved forward to cling onto Tezuka's arm. Reminding himself to uphold his resolve, Tezuka gently shrugged his arm off Tia's, clearing his throat as he spoke, "Let's go to class."

With that, he took off towards the direction of his classroom, resisting his entire urge not to run towards his destination.

'Weird,' Tezuka thought as he slowed down his steps upon reaching his classroom, 'I didn't see Fuji anywhere.'

Although Tezuka had practically rushed to find the tensai once the school bell signaled the start of lunch break, Fuji was nowhere to be found.

"Buchou!" Eiji greeted, his eyes widened in surprise to find Tezuka panting slightly, "Looking for Fuji? He's not here."

"Where is he?"

Eiji shook his head. "I'm sorry. But I have no idea. I missed the chance to ask him."

Tezuka clenched his fists angrily. 'Darn it!' He cursed silently, 'Where on earth is Fuji?'

"Tezuka-kun!" Tia shouted across the hallway as she ran to catch up with the now frustrated captain. "Are you looking for your friend? Er…Fuji-kun? He isn't here?" She asked, peering into the classroom.

"No."

"Well, you could send him a message to ask," Tia suggested, before grabbing onto Tezuka's arm and leading the captain to the canteen. "Meanwhile, let's go to the canteen to buy food. We can wait for Fuji-kun there."

While Tia was holding one of his hands, Tezuka's free hand was occupied with messaging the missing tensai.

"_Where are you, Fuji? Lunch together?"_

Almost immediately, Tezuka's handphone received a reply. But the captain frowned for the first time during that day when he read the reply.

"_Somewhere in school. No thanks, we can have lunch some other time."_

Tezuka sighed. Maybe he should consider using his position as the captain to make Fuji stay after tennis practice. "If not, he will run off again," Tezuka said dryly to himself.

After hesitating for a moment, Tezuka decided to take a bold step and ask Fuji, since he was unable to speak to Fuji personally.

"_Are you jealous?"_

It was after a short while when Tezuka received a reply that, when the message came, he almost stopped in his tracks.

"_Yes."_

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Unknown to Tezuka and Tia, Fuji had just emerged from the toilet the moment the pair walked past it. He froze when he saw Tia dragging Tezuka towards the canteen while the taller boy was busy messaging on his handphone.

Fuji's blue eyes now narrowed in anger and annoyance. Initially, he had decided to approach Tezuka to eat lunch together at their usual place. But seeing that Tezuka was with Tia, Fuji immediately rejected the idea.

"No way," Fuji whispered out as he stared at the retreating figure of the pair. Just then, Fuji's handphone vibrated in his pocket, signaling that he had received a message.

Wondering whom the sender might be, Fuji fished out his handphone. His lips were now set in a grim line as he read the message from Tezuka.

"_Where are you, Fuji? Lunch together?"_

Without a moment of hesitation, Fuji's fingers flew fast and free over the keypad while he walked in the opposite direction of the canteen.

"Baka Tezuka," Fuji muttered angrily as he stormed his way to the library. Right now, he was not in the mood to eat, and he preferred to coop himself in somewhere quiet.

Just then, Fuji's handphone signaled that he had received a message again.

'Tezuka?' Fuji wondered what the captain would say this time. It was pretty obvious to anyone by now that Fuji was avoiding Tezuka. Or rather, he was throwing his 'little' tantrum.

Blue eyes opened in surprise when Fuji read the message from Tezuka. 'How bold,' Fuji thought, his lips curling into a smirk. 'Well, if you are so honest, I will be honest too.'

With that, Fuji immediately replied back. However, after he pushed the 'send' button, the tensai felt regretful. 'I wonder if I am doing the right thing by replying this way,' he thought wistfully.

**A/N: Sorry for the delay in updating this chapter, as I was away on a holiday! Haha..But I hope everyone feels that this chapter is worth the wait! :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Prince of Tennis.**

**A/N: With thousands of thanks to my beta-reader, Vierblith! She's not feeling well, yet she is fast at editing my work! XD**

**Chapter 6 – Misunderstandings and Understandings**

Thank goodness for his abilities to put on his usual stony expression, or else everyone would see that Tezuka was moody right now. 'Fuji is still avoiding me, and if this goes on, he might not even see me as his friend anymore,' Tezuka thought gloomily, the pencil that he was using broke into two.

Surprised and feeling awkward because of the looks that other students were giving him, Tezuka calmly replaced his broken pencil with his spare one and continued to write his notes.

Glancing to his right for the first time since lunch break ended, Tezuka noticed that the seat was still empty.

'Weird,' he thought as he raised a questioning eyebrow. 'Tia said that she would be going to the toilet before coming back to class. But school is ending soon. Where is she?'

Just then, the school bell signaled the end of classes and students began to chatter.

"Oh no! Lesson has just ended!" Tia gasped, panting slightly as she placed a hand against the door to steady herself.

"Where have you been?"

Finally managing to slow down her racing heart, Tia glanced up to see Tezuka looking at her with concern. Giving a wave of nonchalance, she replied, rolling her eyes in annoyance, "Oh! I was pushed into the school's cleaners' room at the backyard. I couldn't get out as it was locked. I did try to shout for help, but I guess everyone was having lessons. Luckily the cleaner dropped by to put his stuff, or else I wouldn't know how long I would be locked." She shrugged.

Tezuka's eyes narrowed. "Any idea why someone would do that?"

Tia stared back at Tezuka with wide eyes. "You are dense, aren't you? Of course it is because I'm hanging too close around you lately. Jealousy is the answer, I suppose." She replied wistfully.

'Could it be Fuji? He said that he was jealous. Don't tell me that he really did this!' Tezuka thought. His eyebrows began to crease together into a deep frown.

It was right at that instant that Fuji appeared at the entrance. "Tezuka," the tensai beamed as he greeted, "are we going to tennis practice together?"

Without replying to Fuji's question, Tezuka started to talk in an admonishing tone, which left the tensai staring at the captain with wide, surprised blue eyes. "Fuji, I thought you would be mature enough not to play this kind of prank. You made Tia skip her afternoon classes and the teacher would definitely inform her parents about it. Don't you feel remorseful about it at all?"

Once the words registered into Fuji's mind, anger overcame surprise as Fuji glared back at the taller boy, his fists clenched so tightly that fingers dug deeply into his palms. 'How dare Tezuka make an assumption like that!'

Almost instantly, the hostile look was replaced by cheerfulness as Fuji replied with his usual smile in place, "Really? I did that? I'm surprised that I can do such a thing without myself knowing it. But," Fuji spun around as he paused for a while, "I'm more shocked that you assume I would do such a thing." He said quietly before hurrying away.

"Tezuka! I didn't know you are such an idiot!" Tia reprimanded angrily as she started to poke the captain on the arm, "since when did I say that the culprit was Fuji-kun? It was those stupid, bitchy girls of your so-called fan club!"

That statement struck Tezuka like a lightning. "So it was not Fuji," he said slowly as he turned to move to his seat in a dejected manner. "And I just accused him!"

Tia sighed. "Tezuka-kun," she began in a serious manner, which caught the boy's attention, "Isn't it obvious that you like Fuji-kun and he likes you too? I can tell. The first day I saw Fuji-kun at the canteen, it was obvious to me that both of you are attracted to each other. And not to mention that you act irrationally wherever Fuji-kun is concerned," she finished, crossing her arms across her chest to emphasize her point.

Tezuka blinked as the words slowly sank into his mind. "So Fuji likes me too?" He gave a bitter laugh, his shoulders slumping in defeat before continuing, "I like him. But I just drove him away." He frowned before straightening his back. "But I won't give him up just like that." He promised in a determined voice, "Definitely." 'Now I finally realized my feelings for Fuji, I can't let him go just like that,' he thought.

Tia grinned. "Now the old Tezuka is back!"

"But I would want to know, why are you helping me? I thought…" he trailed off, feeling awkward at what he was going to say.

"You thought that I like you? Haha! No way!" Tia answered, laughing as she wiped the tears off the corners of her eyes. "I took an instant liking to you because you look very similar to my brother who is currently an undergraduate. Both of you are so stony-looking almost all the time. I can't help but always want to disturb my brother. So I guess I did the same thing to you too," she admitted sheepishly.

Tezuka heaved a sigh of relief. 'Good, now I can tell Fuji too that he doesn't have to be jealous of Tia,' he thought, his heart lightening up a little.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Fuji stormed towards the tennis courts where most of the regulars were already preparing for practice. This time, the tensai made no effort to conceal his anger, sadness and disappointment.

"How dare he accuse me like that? Am I such a lowly person in his eyes, huh?" Fuji whispered, willing the painful stabs in his heart to go away. "Well, if he thinks that I am a person who locks others in the school cleaners' room secretly," he paused as his eyes hardened, "I will show him what I truly am!"

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"This is weird," Tezuka muttered as he walked briskly towards the tennis courts, "A student told me to wait in the office as Coach Ryuzaki wants to talk to me, but she is not there at all." He frowned, "Don't tell me it is some kind of prank?"

The captain's fears were confirmed when he saw none of the regulars practicing at the tennis courts, except for Fuji who seemed to be running laps by himself.

"Fuji!" Tezuka shouted across the courts to catch the attention of the smiling tensai, "Where are the rest?"

Stopping in front of the taller boy, Fuji replied with a frighteningly calm voice, "In the school cleaners' room at the backyard."

Tezuka's breath caught in his throat. Now what was Fuji up to?

"If there's nothing else, I will continue running," Fuji continued coldly. With that, the short brown-haired boy carried on with his jogging.

At once, Tezuka hurried to the direction that Fuji indicated earlier. Upon reaching it, he was shocked to find the room locked. But the funny thing was that there was a key lying on the ground.

Muffled voices of the regulars could be heard. Cries of relief reached the ears of the Seigaku captain when he finally unlocked the door.

"Oishi," Tezuka asked, "What happened?"

Before the vice-captain could reply, Eiji complained with a pout on his lips, "It was Fuji!"

"Well, Fuji made all of us play a match against him. If we lost, we had two choices: we either had to drink Inui's juice," Oishi paused, gulping at the horrifying thought, "or to lock ourselves in the school cleaners' room until you come to let us out."

"Mada mada dane. I almost won against Fuji-senpai," Ryoma said dryly, "7-6" he added.

"Erm, tennis practice is almost over. Could you dismiss us, Tezuka? Everyone is feeling very hot from being locked up and tired from playing against Fuji…"

With an absent-minded wave of his hand, Tezuka nodded as he turned to look for Fuji.

'Fuji,' he thought, 'I get your message clearly now. I'm sorry.'

**A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed reading this chapter! **

**PS. Tezuka shall make everything right, ne? XD**

**Thanks for reading! **

**Of course, reviews will be greatly appreciated! :D**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Sadly, Prince of Tennis does not belong to me.**

**A/N: With loads of hugs to my beta-reader, Vierblith! :)**

**Chapter 7 – To make Tezuka jealous**

By the time Tezuka had reached the tennis club's changing room, the short brown-haired boy was nowhere to be seen.

"Have you seen Fuji?" He asked, effectively startling a passing tennis club member whose arm he suddenly gripped.

"Bu-Buchou!" The first-year student greeted, "Fu-Fuji senpai just left."

Feeling very apologetic for startling the young student, Tezuka immediately let go and mumbled an apology.

'I must speak to Fuji,' Tezuka thought as he hurried out of the room after grabbing his bag.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"Saeki," Fuji greeted his childhood friend, who was leaning against the school gate, "Been waiting long?" he asked.

Grinning, the silver-haired tennis player fell in step with Fuji as they slowly made their way to the nearest shopping mall. "Nope, not really," he replied.

"Okay."

The grin was gradually replaced with a frown as Saeki stared thoughtfully at his friend. "Is there something wrong?"

Shaking his head, Fuji replied gloomily, "Nothing is wrong at all." He paused, staring at the glorious sunset, all rosy and salmon-pink, reflecting the exact opposite of Fuji's current mood, "Nothing at all."

After walking a few meters in silence, Saeki gradually slowed down his steps, whispering, "Don't turn back. We are being followed."

Following Saeki's gesture towards the direction of a blind-spot mirror, Fuji's blue eyes widened in surprise when he recognized the two followers. "Tia…and Tezuka!"

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"Where on earth is Fuji? He couldn't have gone that far," Tezuka muttered as his eyes scanned his surroundings, looking for the tensai.

"Tezuka!" a familiar voice hissed in an urgent manner, "Here! Here!"

Wondering who the person might be, Tezuka turned and was surprised to see Tia beckoning him in an excited manner.

"What-" his words were cut off when Tia placed a finger over the captain's mouth to silence him. She indicated to Tezuka the two retreating figures at the school gate.

"Fuji!" Tezuka blurted out in surprise. "…and Saeki," he said, his eyes narrowing.

"Jealous of Saeki?" Tia teased as she giggled, not caring about the glare that Tezuka shot her way. "Let's go!" Without waiting for a reply, she tugged Tezuka's arm to follow Fuji and Saeki.

"Aren't we stalking them?" Tezuka sputtered in surprise.

"Stalking?" Tia repeated with a questioning look. "This is what we called 'Following,'" she corrected. "Besides, aren't you curious about where they are going?"

Tezuka kept quiet. 'Of course I do,' he thought. There was no denial by now that seeing Fuji with Saeki for the second time had made Tezuka feel extremely uncomfortable and…upset.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"So, what are we going to do?" Saeki asked quietly as they slowly made their way. "Expose them?" he suggested.

Fuji shook his head. "Just let them be. Saeki," Fuji addressed his friend in a serious tone that immediately caught the attention of the Rokkaku tennis player, "You are my friend, aren't you? So if I need your help, you will definitely help, right?" he asked hopefully.

Saeki nodded his head slowly. 'Fuji is not himself today,' he noted, 'I wonder what happened?'

"Great! If that is the case, stand in front of me. Please," Fuji requested, his blue eyes now seemed pleading. Feeling quite stunned at the sudden request, Saeki complied as he moved to stand in front of his friend, who had, by now, stopped in his tracks.

"Hug me."

Saeki raised a questioning eyebrow. But sensing the helplessness from his close friend, Saeki moved forward to embrace the tensai. Arms wrapped around Fuji's shoulders as Saeki gently rested Fuji's head against his chest. All the while, Saeki felt two pairs of eyes were staring at them a few meters away.

"Tezuka. He is the reason, isn't he?" Saeki asked quietly. "Something happened between the two of you, and you wanted to make him feel jealous, right?"

The shorter boy in his arms nodded. "Yes, something did happen but I am not even sure that he will feel jealous." He paused, looking at his concerned friend, "But you will help me, won't you?" Fuji asked softly.

Sighing, Saeki replied, "Of course. But you have to tell me everything over dinner, okay? I heard your stomach growling, Fuji Syusuke." He teased.

Without waiting for Fuji's reply, Saeki suggested cheerfully, "Let's grab some food!" With that, he released Fuji from his hug only to hold his friend's hand, "And we shall make Tezuka jealous!" he added in a low whisper that made Fuji grin like a Cheshire cat.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Tia could tell right away that Tezuka was not only jealous; he was also fuming with anger. With jaws set in a grim line and fists clenched to a ball, Tezuka looked ready to kill. And yet, he kept quiet throughout.

"They went to dinner, shopping and are holding hands right now. I wonder where they are heading to," Tia commented, trying to break the stifling silence. "Don't you intend to do something about it, Tezuka?" she asked, stealing a glance at the sulking captain.

'Of course I want to do something about Syusuke,' Tezuka thought miserably as he racked his mind. 'But the main problem is that Syusuke refuses to speak to me,' he glared at Saeki, 'and he is making me jealous.'

Turning to Tia, Tezuka sighed, "I suppose Saeki is sending Syusuke home. This is the direction," he replied dryly.

Tia almost halted in her tracks. 'Syusuke,' she repeated in her mind as she grinned, 'My, my… You are really possessive, Tezuka.'

A few minutes later, they had reached Fuji's house. Tezuka held his breath when he saw Fuji bidding Saeki goodbye. 'I'm glad that they did not kiss,' Tezuka thought, letting his breath out slowly. Upon seeing that Fuji had let himself into his house, Tezuka told Tia quietly, "I'm sorry. But could you go home by yourself? Give me a call when you reach home safely. I have something important to do right now."

Seeing the determined look at Tezuka's brown eyes, Tia nodded understandingly. "See you." With that, she turned to the opposite direction and to the nearest bus stop.

At once, Tezuka jogged as he called out, "Saeki!"

The silver-haired boy turned and gave a wide smile. "Tezuka! I've been waiting for you!"

Tezuka slowed down to a stop in front of Saeki as he repeated questioningly, "You have been waiting for me?"

Saeki nodded his head enthusiastically. "You and your classmate don't make good stalkers," he laughed as he continued in a serious tone now, "I wanted to speak to you about Fuji."

Tezuka nodded again, allowing Fuji's friend to continue, "Even though he was smiling all the way home, I can sense that Fuji's deeply hurt by your accusation today," he looked at Tezuka straight in the eye, "Especially when you accused him in front of your classmate."

Tezuka sucked in a deep breath as he removed his glasses to massage the bridge of his nose. "Well," he started, putting his glasses back into place, "I must admit that I was wrong. It was very unlike me to do that in the first place. I wanted to apologize to Syusuke, but he wouldn't give me the chance."

Saeki chuckled. 'Syusuke, that's what you call Fuji now,' he thought, his smile becoming slightly wider as he said with a twinkle in his eye. "Since you are sincere about apologizing to Fuji, and," he paused, wanting to emphasize his point, "you like him. So I will not say anything more. Good luck!"

"Wait!" Tezuka said, stopping Saeki in his tracks before the latter walked away, "Are you and Syusuke together?"

Saeki raised an eyebrow. He knew what Tezuka was referring to yet he could not help but tease the usual serious-looking captain. Giving a shrug, he questioned back, feigning ignorance, "What do you mean by that?"

Tezuka cleared his throat, feeling very awkward for the question that he was going to ask next. But if he did not clarify now, doubts would always be in his mind. Facing Saeki squarely in the eye, he asked boldly, "I mean, are you trying to be Syusuke's boyfriend?"

A pregnant silence hung in the air. "Well, if I do, what would you do?" Saeki asked, breaking the silence.

Straightening his back, Tezuka replied with a sense of conviction in his voice, "Then I will have to make sure that you don't get the chance, since," he paused again, "since I love Syusuke."

"Great! Then go after him!" Saeki encouraged, surprising the Seigaku captain once again, "Fuji is only my best friend and I don't want him to get hurt. Plus, I think you are the better suitor for Fuji," he said, before waving a hand, "I have got to go. Bye and good luck!"

Tezuka stared after the retreating figure of Rokkaku tennis player. 'Right,' Tezuka heaved a sigh of relief, 'and now I just have to find the chance to speak to Fuji and apologize to him. And,' he thought, 'tell him that I love him.'

**A/N: Hello everyone! I'm so sorry for the slow update.. :X But I do hope this chapter is worth the wait too!**

**Once again, reviews are greatly loved! :D**


	8. Author's Notes

Hi all!

I think some of you might notice that in my summary, I added "Warning: Shounen-ai" - that wasn't there initially.

This is beacause I have just received a review from the reviewer who called himself/herself 'icequeen-chan' who said in her review, 'go to hell! You made tezuka-kun gay! i hate you! go to hell!'

First, I must say that I am not a petty person. But her review made me feels extremely irate. I remembered first reviewing for a story and it clearly states this: "It is extremely helpful to use this opportunity to comment on an aspect of the story that can be improved. A well rounded critique is often the most rewarding tool for the writer. "

I am okay with constructive criticism, but I absolutely do not tolerate this kind of childish reviews such as those by 'icequeen-chan'. If I do not do a good job in writing a story, please feel free to point out how I can improve and not just ask the author to "go to hell" in such a irresponsible and childish manner.

I can only ask such people to be more mature and to take responsibility whatever they said over the reviews they did. I still strongly believe that most of us writers do welcome constructive criticism(and encouragement), but definitely not those childish reviews.

Lastly, if anyone does not like the story, don't use the review to make irresponsible remarks.

SkySurf


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Prince of Tennis.**

**A/N: With loads of hugs to my beta-reader, Vierblith**

**Chapter 8 – When You Follow Me, I run away. When You Run Away, I Follow You**

Fuji tossed and turned in his bed as he stared at the starless night sky. Seeing Tezuka with Tia had thrown Fuji off-track. "Baka Tezuka," Fuji whispered to no one in particular. Just then, a beep from Fuji's handphone signaled that he had received a message. The tensai's heart lightened a little when he realized that the message was from none other than Tezuka.

_'I'm very sorry. Will you forgive me?'_

Staring thoughtfully at his phone for a moment, Fuji sighed after placing the device on his study desk. He really wanted to forgive Tezuka. But he did not know what to do. Fuji knew that he was being selfish. Despite knowing that Tezuka was feeling very apologetic, Fuji wanted to take advantage of the current situation. Never before had Tezuka focused so much attention on him and Fuji had to admit that he enjoyed the rare attention from the Seigaku captain.

'What happens after I forgive you, Tezuka?' Fuji asked silently as he closed his eyes. 'Will you go back to your old ways? Will you treat me as your normal friend even after I told you that I am jealous? Are you going to stop giving me much attention again?'

Just when Fuji was slowly falling into a dreamless sleep, another beep from his handphone broke the serenity.

Grabbing his handphone from the study desk next to his bed, Fuji read the message with sleepy eyes. However, blue eyes widened in shock as Fuji's heart began to race when he read the second message from Tezuka.

_'I love you.'_

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Tezuka stared blankly at the handphone on his hand, wishing that the screen would light up and indicate 'You Have a Message.' He had sent a message to apologize to Fuji, but, sadly, after waiting for about five minutes, the device remained silent.

Tezuka sighed as he removed his glasses to massage the bridge of his nose – a habit that he did whenever he felt helpless. "Syusuke, Syusuke," he muttered while placing his glasses back onto his nose, "Are you really not going to forgive me? Or" he paused, suddenly recalling his earlier encounter with Saeki, "or you saw Tia and me and you thought that we are together?"

That sudden thought seemed to cause the frustrated Tezuka to frown deeper than usual. 'This is bad,' Tezuka thought as he clasped his hands together to rest his chin on top of his knuckles. 'If Syusuke thinks that Tia and I are dating, it might be difficult for me to court him since he misunderstands me in the first place. What should I do?'

The bemused Seigaku captain could only stare at the wall blankly. This is the first time that Tezuka wanted to court Fuji, and this first time was certainly a difficult time since there were misunderstandings between them.

"Well, if that is the case," Tezuka muttered as his fingers began to fly fast and free over the keypad of his handphone, "I shall court him using my way."

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Sunlight filtered through the window, spilling some of its warm rays onto the face of the slowly awakening tensai. Fuji drew his blanket over his face, not wanting to wake upas he felt tired.

'It is all Tezuka's fault,' Fuji thought gloomily as he groped under his pillow to search for his handphone that was lying somewhere on his bed. 'I had a hard time trying to sleep because of your message last night.'

Fuji sighed. Although he was unwilling to attend tennis practice on a Saturday morning, he knew that he should not skip the practice. Throwing off his blanket, Fuji sat up in bed with his handphone now in his hand. Blue eyes flickered in surprise as he realized that he had received two messages from Tezuka.

_'There is nothing between Tia and me. You have misunderstood us. She and I are only friends. Besides, the only one I am attracted to is you.'_

"Me?" Fuji questioned, "Not Tia?" Wondering what the second message could be, Fuji read it and his eyes widened in alarm as he hurried out of his room, leaving his handphone on the bed.

_'I'm coming to pick you up to go for practice together.'_

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"Ohayou, Yuuta," Tezuka greeted the brown-haired St. Rudolph player who had opened the door. "Is Syusuke at home?"

Yuuta sighed. 'Baka aniki,' he thought, frowning a little before realizing that Tezuka was now staring at him. "Erm," Yuuta cleared his throat, "Sorry, but aniki has already left for school this morning. He hitched a ride in my sister's car," he paused as he continued silently, 'after much persuasion and some tantrum-throwing.'

"Er…he said he had already sent you a message," Yuuta mumbled, having a bad feeling that there was something going on between Tezuka and his brother, and that he had no wish to be caught in their affairs.

"I see. Thank you. Goodbye." Tezuka answered after a brief moment of silence. He turned away and started to walk towards the direction of his school with an obvious air of dejection.

Taking out his handphone, Tezuka read his just-received text message and his eyebrows furrowed together.

_'I'm sorry. But Sister offered me a ride.'_

"A message that is just sent about three minutes ago," Tezuka noted. "Obviously Syusuke is avoiding me. If he is hitching a ride, he would have informed me a long time ago." He stared at the bright sky thoughtfully. "Now I wonder how I can get him to talk to me face-to-face."

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

Fuji sighed inwardly. Luckily, he managed to persuade his sister to give him a ride to school. 'Or else it might be uncomfortable with Tezuka,' Fuji thought wistfully, wondering if it was really the case.

Everyone was doing warm-ups under the sunny clear sky. 'If only it rains,' Fuji thought gloomily, 'and then practice would be cancelled.'

The tensai was brought back to reality when he heard a deep familiar voice behind him, "Syusuke."

Fuji snapped opened his blue eyes in surprise as he spun around to meet the familiar brown eyes of Tezuka Kunimitsu.

'What did you call me just now?' Fuji thought, his breath seemed to be caught in his throat.

"I need to speak you personally _now_. Meet me at the changing room."

"Why should I?" Fuji asked defiantly. His voice now hinted agitation. "If it is about tennis, I would gladly meet you. But if it is not," Fuji paused as he turned away, not catching the determined look that Tezuka had in his eyes, "We can speak after practice."

"But you would run away from me again," Tezuka replied quietly, noting the stiffening of the shorter boy's back. "I know you have it in mind but I would not allow you to do so."

With that, Tezuka bent down a little and used his muscular arms to effortlessly lift the surprised Fuji off the ground.

With a yelp, the tensai instinctively wrapped his arms around Tezuka's neck for support as he found himself being carried off.

"Tezuka! What are you doing? Put me down! Everyone is looking!" Fuji hissed, aware of the many pairs of eyes that were staring at them.

"No," Tezuka replied before giving out his usual command, "Everyone! Fifty laps around the courts now!"

The sudden command given by Tezuka immediately sent everyone scrambling to continue their practice though their minds were wondering what had happened a few minutes ago.

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

"You don't have to lock the door," Fuji said quietly after Tezuka had placed Fuji on the bench in the changing room. "I won't run away."

"You might," Tezuka replied dryly after making sure that he had secured the door. Turning to look at the sulking tensai, who was sitting on the bench, Tezuka sighed as he began, "First, I would want to say that I am very sorry for accusing you wrongly. Will you forgive me?"

Fuji sighed. His eyes softened when he saw the sincerity in Tezuka's eyes. He nodded dumbly, waiting for the taller boy to continue.

"And," Tezuka paused, trying to gather his thoughts into words. 'This is more difficult than I thought, considering that this is my first time,' he mused to himself.

"The next thing I would want to clarify again is that I don't love Tia and she treats me as her brother only," Tezuka continued gently, "because the person I am truly attracted to is right in front of me."

Fuji was truly stunned. Hearing those words from Tezuka's mouth was totally different from the reading Tezuka's message from the night before. Fuji stood slowly as he looked at Tezuka in the eye. "I never thought that you would reciprocate my feelings."

"Don't avoid me anymore," Tezuka said quietly as he moved forward to embrace the smaller boy, wrapping his arms around Fuji's waist as he placed a kiss on Fuji's cheek.

Fuji nodded, unable to speak, as his voice seemed to choke with words. It all started with Fuji messaging Tezuka everyday, and he was really glad that he had taken the initiative.

"And promise me 3 things," Tezuka added, the corners of his lips curling into a smirk. "One: never avoid me. We can talk things calmly to avoid any more misunderstandings. Two: don't skip your meals. Saeki told me that you have been skipping your meals recently," he paused, tapping his finger on Fuji's nose as if he was reprimanding a child, "and three: call me 'Kunimitsu'."

Fuji giggled as he tiptoed a little to kiss Tezuka fully on the lips, "Aye, aye Captain Kunimitsu!"

For the first time on that day, Tezuka broke into a smile that radiate genuine happiness, "Alright. Let's go for practice."

**TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji****TezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFujiTezukaFuji**

As Tezuka was walking out of the school gate together with the Regulars, he felt that the tensed atmosphere was gone, replaced by a relaxed and cheerful one. The moment the pair walked out of the changing room with their fingers laced together, it was pretty obvious to everyone that any issue between Fuji and Tezuka had been resolved. Of course, the Regulars felt relieved since they do not have to worry about getting in the crossfire between the captain and the tensai.

Tezuka was walking halfway out of the school gate with the rest of the team when he felt a vibration from his handphone in his pocket. Wondering who the sender might be, he took out his handphone to read the message.

_'I love you.'_

Tezuka let out a little grin. He turned and was not at all surprised to see Fuji grinning mischievously.

"I love you too, Syusuke," Tezuka said huskily to Fuji as he leaned down to give the tensai a passionate kiss, not caring about the surprised looks that the rest of the Regulars had sent his way.

**A/N: That's all, everyone! This is the last chapter of this story, Messages. I must say that I really enjoyed writing this story, and I do hope that everyone likes this chapter too! School is starting soon, and I might be slow at updating, or coming up with new stories. But don't worry; I will definitely be back with stories (hopefully, interesting ones!) since I love to relax myself from school work (and I like to write when I relax, haha!)**

**Reviews will still be appreciated, of course, although this is the last chapter. Hee…**

**Lastly, to the following people I would like to thank for supporting this story and your reviews aspire me to try to make this story as interesting as possible (I remember some of you advise me not to make Tia another Mary-Sue character, and I am glad that I did!)**

**_Phoenixfirekitsune,icy sweet candy,Misuzu Kamio,Alaena Flame Dragonstar, masi, CrystalKitteN-MeW, shinrin13, demon m-chan, finding, CrypticButterfly, TristainMontmorency, yoshikochan, broadlinedream, imuzuok, Apple Bubblegum, LtCol. S3, Riyoku-kun, Rikkaidailuvr, Vhii1217, imuzuok, EvCaCeLy, maldita08, MysticBlood, nanachan87, eliza-natsuko, Crystal-mirage, WhiteEnsigma, faith lane, blueray, galeaya, shinjuku041, lovewritermaiko, xquisittexabie, syuusukef, FujItachiHa, Sano, Aelendis_**

**And lastly, my fantastic beta-reader, Vierblith!**

**I hope I didn't leave anyone out. But if I did, please accept my apologies. :D**

**Till the next story! (runs off searching for new ideas)**


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